Hey, if you could make those hydraulic wheel-motors big enough, and with big hyd. pumps on engines, think of what they could do to the takeoff roll!
Move over fuel dragsters, the the cloud of smoke on the runway is a hvy 747 "burning out" his tyres in preparation for T/O!
To add the icing, if motor/pumps were used, the wheel-pumps could feed power back into the engines, providing wheel braking, augmenting reverse thrust, and reducing fuel cons. during the reverse cycle simultaneously.
Ha! which way to the patent shop?
Seriously, in respect of a low power taxi system, the proof of the pudding would be the economics of the extra weight and complication versus the fuel savings.
Last edited by ZQA297/30; 2nd Aug 2005 at 11:17.